The Region - News from Dec. 24, 1985

Parts of the Southland will have a smoggy Christmas this year, an official of the South Coast Air Quality Management District said. “It is a typical December situation,” spokesman Ron Ketcham said. “The area has been under a high-pressure dome of warm air over cold air for the past three weeks. That situation permits a pollution buildup,” he added, noting that the current buildup could easily last through Christmas. The winter pollution is a change from the more familiar summer smog alerts both in pollutants and the area affected, he said. The pollutants are nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide, and they concentrate near the coastal areas, leaving the inland valleys clear.